Up in Flames
by RuthWriter
Summary: It's been years since April married Matthew Taylor and left Grey-Sloan. One night, her home catches fire and her marriage goes up in smoke. She leans on the one man who has always been there.
1. Chapter 1

"Mo-om. This homework is too hard."

April laughed, tousling her daughter's hair. "Harriet, you're in kindergarten. It's only going to get harder."

Harriet sighed dramatically and sprawled out across the table. Her step-sister, Ruby, who was sitting across the table, mimicked her actions. April giggled at their dramatics, and crossed the kitchen to finish putting away the dishes. "If you finish your homework soon, we can fit in _two_ stories before bed."

"Yay! Two stories, Hattie. Do it fast." Ruby jumped down from her seat and around to stand beside her sister's chair. "I'll help."

April smiled as she watched her two daughters work together. It had been four years since she and Matthew got married and blended their families together. It had been hard at first. They married relatively quickly, and she started a new job around the same time. Her world completely changed, and it took some time to get used to. But these two girls...they were worth every bit of it.

April picked her phone up off the counter. She clicked her husband's name and listened as the phone rang. Matthew had been working late a lot recently. They didn't work together anymore. A few months ago, Matthew had taken a job at a hospital about thirty minutes away. It was a great opportunity, and he had said that he didn't feel as if he could pass it up. Honestly, April was a little relieved. Things had been a little tense lately, and she thought that not being at work together would relieve some of the tension, and allow them to focus on themselves as a couple. And it was true. Since he had left, they hadn't been fighting nearly as much anymore. Although, that could also be attributed to the fact that his extra hours at work had been keeping him away from home more as well. Truthfully, she hadn't seen her husband for more than an hour a day in a few weeks.

"Mom, I'm all done!" April smiled at her daughter and crossed the room to check her homework. "Very good, honey. Let's start getting ready for bed, then."

Harriet shoved her papers in her backpack. "Can I call Dad before bed?"

"Of course, sweetie. Just get into your PJs first." The girls took off running upstairs, little feet pounding all the way up.

Jackson and April had maintained a great friendship and co-parenting relationship. April had Harriet during the week, and Jackson took her on the weekends. Both parents went to the same church, so that made weekends really easy as well. Watching Jackson grow in his faith had been absolutely wonderful for April to watch. It was something she had been praying for for years, and seeing it finally happen brought her a lot of joy.

At first, Matthew had been a little resentful of Jackson. Actually, more than a little. He would get frustrated when Harriet talked about him, and he didn't like sharing a pew with them at church. But lately, he'd been a lot better at it. April was pleasantly surprised that he had even stopped grumbling when she spoke to Jackson on the phone.

Bedtime went off without a hitch, and the call to Jackson went well. Ruby had also grown to love Harriet's dad. She wasn't around him a lot (Matthew had not been a fan of that), but she loved to listen to Harriet talk about her dad, and would say hi to him on phone calls as well. He usually brought Ruby candy when he came to pick Harriet up or drop her off. It doesn't really take a lot to gain a four year old's affection.

After the girls had fallen asleep, April trudged across the hall to her room. The family cat, Boots, slipped around her and down the stairs, no doubt headed for the kitchen, where she kept his food. The kitten had been a Christmas present for both girls from Arizona. She'd run it past April and Matthew first. Matthew had said he was fine with it, and April had been wanting her children to have some sort of pet for a while. She loved growing up on a farm as a kid. So the family gained some more happiness in the form of a black and white kitten, named for the boots-like pattern on his feet.

April entered her bedroom and tripped on her ropers, which she had kicked off when she got home from work. Sighing, she straightened the boots up beside her bed, and picked up the jacket that was also laying on the ground, throwing it across the chair beside her window.

"God, I need to clean up." April muttered, but she slid on a night gown and crawled into bed anyways. She tried to call Matthew's phone again, but it went to voicemail. She figured he must be having a busy night.

* * *

"Mommy!" April's eyes flew open. Through her blurry eyesight, she saw two little girls running into her bedroom.

 _Something's wrong._

She blinked a few times and realized her blurry vision wasn't from being asleep. Her bedroom was filling with a thin layer of smoke.


	2. Chapter 2

She leaped out of bed, scooping up Ruby, her smallest child, and grabbed Harriet's hand. "Okay girls, I need you to both do exactly as I say." Harriet nodded. April glanced around her room, noticing her husband's absence. Matthew must not have returned from work yet. She quickly stepped into her ropers that she had taken off before bed, without bothering to lace them up. She peered around the corner of her door. All she felt was heat. The entire hallway was filled with thick smoke, coming from the direction of the stairs and the kitchen. Where her only option of escape was. Both the front door and the garage doors downstairs, past the kitchen. Her thoughts raced as she stepped back inside her room, pulling Harriet with her. She closed the door. "Remember what they said it school girls. Get close to the ground." She set Ruby down, who followed her step-sister's example of sitting down on the floor. April crossed the room to her window. She opened it, breathing in a gulp of fresh air. She pushed the screen out of the window and peered into her back yard. _Why did I pick the second floor._ She tried to think of the risks. She could jump out first, and try to catch the girls. But Ruby was afraid of heights, and she didn't know if Harriet could convince Ruby to make the leap.

April heard sirens in the distance, and sighed in relief. She squatted down. "Come here girls." The girls crawled over to her, Harriet dragging the family cat, Boots, along with her. April smiled. She hadn't even noticed that Hattie had grabbed her. "Okay, we're going to get out of here, but I need you guys to be very brave."

"Okay, Mommy." Ruby blinked her bright blue eyes up at April and put her small hand in April's. The sirens were now loud, right outside of her house. She heard voices around the side of the house, and let go of Ruby's hand to stand up and lean out the window. "Help! Help!" She screamed out the window, and soon Harriet began to join her. Ruby whimpered, leaning against April's leg.

April grew louder, and soon she saw a dark figure rounding the corner of the house. "April!" April could have cried in relief. "Ben! Up here." Ben Warren looked up into the house and waved. "Is everyone with you?"

"Yes! The girls are in here with me. Matthew isn't here. There's too much smoke outside of my room. I think we need to come out the window."

Ben nodded. "Hold on one second, I'm getting a ladder." Ben ran around the corner of the house, and returned with another firefighter and a ladder. "Can you climb down?"

"I think so!" April turned around to her daughters. "Harriet, you're first."

"What about Boots?" Harriet hugged the black and white cat close to her chest. "I'll get him out." April reassured her, taking the cat out of her daughters arms and setting him gently on the bed. She lifted her daughter off of the ground and out the window, helping her climb onto the ladder. Harriet climbed about halfway down the ladder. She then jumped into Ben's arms at his coaxing. He set her down on the ground and the other firefighter took her around the building. April turned to Ruby. 'It's your turn, honey. I need you to be brave." Ruby nodded and raised her arms to be lifted. April picked her up and tried to life her towards the window. Ruby climbed onto the ladder, and then looked down. She froze. Her blue eyes widened in panic, and she clung to the ladder. "Mommy, its far."

"I know, honey. But Ben's down there. He'll watch for you. You just have to get there."

"Can't."

"Ruby Elise Taylor. You are a very brave little girl. You have to do this. We have to get out." Ruby nodded warily, and took a tiny step down the ladder. She made it about a third of the way down before she started to cry softly. "I can't go more." April heard Ben call up to her daughter. "It's okay, Ruby. You can jump now. I've got you. April held her breath, and watched her daughter let go of the ladder and fall safely into Ben's arms. He set the girl down on the ground.

"Okay, April." April turned around and scooped Boots up off the bed. Her room was now almost completely full of smoke, and her lungs were burning. She looked around for a jacket, and grabbed a hoodie that zipped up. She stuck the cat into her jacket and zipped it, putting an arm around her body to hold the cat in place. She coughed as she gingerly climbed up onto the ladder and carefully made her way down. Ben helped her off the ladder when she got to the bottom. She pulled the cat out of her jacket, and Ruby reached for him, cuddling the cat. He was almost as big as she was, but he stayed still as she carried him.

They made their way around the house to an ambulance, where an EMT was already looking at Harriet. April helped her daughter climb up into the rig, and then she turned to look at her home. The entire front of the house was up in flames. Ben had taken over for one of the firefighters who was spraying a blast of water at house. But she knew it was too late. Everything was gone.

"April, you need to be looked at."

April turned to see Liz, a EMT that she had know through her time at Grey-Sloan. She nodded. "I'm just going to call Matthew. I need to call him." Liz smiled and patted a seat on the truck. "How about I take your vitals while you call him." April smiled back and took a seat on the rig. "Ouch!" Harriet cried out in pain. April moved closer to her daughters and examined them both. Another EMT was currently treating a minor burn on Harriet's arm. "Oh my goodness, lovey. When did that happen?" Harriet looked up at her mom. "Boots was stuck in the kitchen. I had to go get him." April sighed and placed a kiss on Harriet's forehead. "Don't ever do that again, okay? That was really dangerous." Harriet nodded, and Ruby nuzzled in between them, as April pulled out her phone and called Matthew. It rang, and rang, and rang, and then went to voicemail. She sighed, and tried again. It rang twice, and then went to voicemail.

 _Declined._

April sighed again, but it turned into a wheezing cough. Liz frowned at her. "I think we should take you guys up to the hospital."

"Daddy!" Harriet squealed. "Jacks!" Ruby echoed behind her sister. April smiled at them. "Okay, let's do it."


	3. Chapter 3

"April!" April smiled. She would know that voice anywhere. "Mom!"

Jackson entered the room, with Harriet and Ruby trailing behind him. He sat down beside her, giving her a concerned look. "Are you okay?" April nodded, pulling the oxygen mask off her face. "I'm fine. Just a little smoke inhalation is all." Jackson put his hand over hers, moving her mask back onto her face. "Well, you should probably leave that on then."

"Look, mommy! I got a pink band-aid!" Harriet showed off her wrapped arm. April laughed, pulling her mask off again. "That's the biggest band-aid I've ever seen." She picked up her phone and scrolled through the numbers."I need to call Mercy-Grace Hospital. Matthew won't return my phone calls. The house- it's gone Jackson. It's all gone. He hates it when I call the hospital, but I don't know what else to do." Jackson smiled, moving her mask back onto her face. "Let me do it. It's gonna be okay." April sighed gratefully. Jackson clicked on Mercy-Grace's number.

"Hi, yes, this is Jackson Avery, calling for Matthew Taylor." A look of confusion crossed Jackson's face. "Oh, okay. Thank you." April looked at him. "They say he left at eight o'clock tonight, and won't be back until 12 o'clock tomorrow." April looked at the clock in the emergency area. One o'clock in the morning. _Where the hell is Matthew?_

A few hours later, April and the girls were finally being discharged when her phone rang.

"Matthew." April answered the phone, stepping away from Jackson, who was helping the girls put on their coats.

"April, what the hell is going on. I just got home, and there are fire trucks and police everywhere." Matthew's tone was snippy, and April was furious. "Where the hell have you been, Matthew? I've been calling you since seven o'clock last night."

"I was working, April. I can't answer the phone every time you decide to call me. You know that."

"Really? Because Mercy-Grace said you got off at eight. So where have you been?"

"I had some things to take care of. What happened? Are you guys okay?" April sighed. "For the most part. We're at Grey-Sloan getting discharged now."

"Okay. I'll come get you guys there. Maybe we can stay at Jeremy's tonight."

Jeremy was Matthew's best friend. They met a couple of years ago. He wasn't a terrible guy, but he also wasn't exactly someone April would want her children spending a lot of time around. But she wasn't in the mood for a fight. "Okay. But don't meet us here. We're headed to Jackson's. You can pick us up there."

"Jackson's there?" Matthew's voice had a tone in it that April didn't like. "Yes. He answered the phone when I called."

She shakily hung up the phone before Matthew could reply. She walked back towards her ex-husband and children. "Can we head to your house until Matthew gets here? I'm tired of being here."

* * *

The car ride to Jackson's apartment was relatively silent. Harriet and Ruby, exhausted from the excitement of the day, had passed out. After Jackson had quickly agreed to April and the girls coming over, they had realized that they only had one car seat in his car; Harriet's. Webber had offered them the car seat he and Catherine kept in their car for when Harriet stayed with them occasionally, and April had thanked him profusely.

Jackson looked over at his ex-wife, who was slumped into the passenger seat beside him. The day seemed to have taken a toll on her too. Her whole body looked tired, and her thoughts seemed to be miles away. He reached over and put a hand on her arm, and she turned to look at him, smiling a little. Jackson returned the smile, turning back to look at the road as April placed a hand over his.

He was incredibly grateful that he and April had remained friends. Their friendship had begun to strengthen since her miraculous recovery a few years ago. It had grown through April and Matthew's marriage, through Jackson's sabbatical at Grey-Sloan. He had actually called April before he left. She had suggested he wait. Talk to Maggie first, and then make the decision. But he knew if he waited, he wouldn't go, and he could feel in is heart of hearts that he needed to go. So he left. He came back. Tried to make things work with Maggie, but the damage was done. He'd left, and come back different, and worse yet, he'd done it all without talking to Maggie about it. The broke up a couple months later.

He was happy though. He dated a bit, focused on being a great father to Harriet, and he and April had become best friends once more. He had tried to smooth things over with Matthew. They had become relatively civil, but Jackson could still sense the disdain that Matthew carried for him.

He pulled into the parking lot of his apartment, and noticed that Matthew's pick up truck was already there. April smiled sheepishly. "I guess this was kind of unnecessary." Jackson shook his head. "Absolutely not. I could tell you needed to get out of there." April nodded and gently woke up the girls. She scooped up Ruby as Jackson grabbed Harriet, and slowly made her way over to the truck. She opened the back door of the truck and began fastening Ruby in, who was slowly waking up. "Hey, babe." April avoided eye contact with her husband, instead choosing to focus on the child in front of her. Ruby stretched, and in the process kicked off one of her slippers. She smiled sweetly at April. "Sorry, Mommy."

"It's okay, bug." April leaned down to pick up the slipper. A flash of red caught her eye, and she pulled a piece of fabric out from underneath the seat, and then dropped it just as quickly as if she had been burned.

 _Panties. Lacy panties. Not hers._

She stared down at the evidence of what was likely her husband's affair. She looked up towards Jackson, who was fastening Harriet in on the other side. She then turned to Matthew, whose eyes were locked on her form. A deer stuck in headlights.

"Jackson? Would you please take Harriet and Ruby inside?" Jackson's eyes met hers questioningly. She felt her cheeks burning in anger as she unfastened Ruby's seat belt. "Please."

Jackson simply nodded, scooping Harriet up and then walking around to April's side to get Paige. She watched as he looked down at the floorboard, and then back up at her. "April..."

He put a hand on her arm, and she shook it off. "I've got this. Please just take my daughter's inside."

Jackson nodded and she heard him head up the stairs of his apartment building, as she turned to meet her husband's eyes.


	4. Chapter 4

"Are mommy and daddy fighting?" The small blonde child tugged Jackson's shirt, looking up at him expectantly. Jackson struggled with what to say. It wasn't his place to tell her that something was wrong between her dad and step-mom, he knew that much. But he also didn't want to lie and tell her everything was fine if April came back inside and it became very obvious that it wasn't. Harriet, however, swooped in and rescued him. "They're just having a grown-up talk, Ruby. Like they do sometimes after we go to bed." Ruby nodded and the two girls dashed off into the living room.

Jackson knew that the kindergartner obviously had no idea of the true root of the problem, but she was accustomed to April and Matthew having "grown-up talk". She had spoken to him about it on multiple occasions, asking why Jackson and April never had "grown-up talk" like Matthew and April. At the time, Jackson had assumed that "grown-up talk" was code for sex, and he had told Harriet that this particular talk was for married people. Now he wondered how many of those talks were arguments. April had alluded to marital problems in the past. While she didn't discuss them in length, the subject had been touched upon (they were best friends after all). He knew that she had felt things were better now that they weren't working together, but that she hadn't been seeing him as much with the extra work hours. Obviously at least some of those extra hours had not been spent at work.

Jackson suddenly felt overcome with rage. Things had happened too fast for him to react in the parking lot. April had practically ordered him into the house with Ruby and Harriet. But now, realizing the full situation, he wanted nothing more than to go downstairs and rip Matthew Taylor limb from limb. That was his best friend. The mother of his children. The love of his life.

He'd had a hard time admitting that at first. It felt like finality, like he could never be happy with the love of his life being married to someone else. It felt hopeless to admit it. But it was true. He'd never have the connection he had with April with someone else, he knew that much. He'd never love anyone like he loved her. But they weren't meant to be together forever, and he'd come to accept that. They had never really found themselves back on the same page, and it destroyed them. But they'd become strong co-parents in spite of it, and for that, he couldn't be more grateful. He said a quick prayer for April and then headed into the living room to check on the girls.

* * *

"Babe..." Matthew spoke tentatively, as if trying to coax a tentative deer. April gritted her teeth. "Don't 'babe' me." Matthew got out of his truck and walked slowly around it to April. "If you just let me explain."

"Explain what, Matthew?" April hissed. "How lacy red panties ended up in the back of your truck? I sure hope you're moonlighting as a drag queen, because from where I'm standing it looks like you were off _screwing_ someone while your family was trapped in a _burning house._ So I'd sure love an explanation to the contrary."

"I had no idea about the fire, I swear. If I did, you know I would have….God, I swear-"

"You wouldn't have what, Matthew, not been having car sex god-knows where in the middle of the night?"

Matthew didn't say anything, shifting to lean against the truck. His demeanor changed from apologetic to annoyed. April had seen it many times. Matthew could only take being wrong for so long before he started being defensive. "You could have texted me you know, and told me what was wrong. If I had known what the problem was, I would have called back a lot sooner."

April sputtered. "WHAT? You would have called me back a lot sooner? You're so right. I should have texted you while I was handing _our children_ down to firefighters out of a _burning building_ so that you would know that it was serious enough to stop fucking some woman!"

Matthew winced outwardly at April's cursing. She laughed. "Oh, I'm sorry. Was my curing too immoral for you? Sorry about that. I'm just really geared up about infidelity."

There was a short silence, broken only by April's heaving breathing. "Who is she?"

Matthew rested his head against the truck, regarding her for a moment. "It's Alicia Newburn."

April's thoughts exploded with the new information. Alicia was Matthew's new partner at work. She also went to the same church as the family, and was Ruby's Sunday School teacher. She'd been to their house, sat at their table and ate dinner with the family. She'd spent the night before when she and her husband divorced. She'd attended parties, bonded with their children. Sat on their couch, laughed with April.

April suddenly, for the first time in the past several hours, was very grateful that their house was burning to the ground.

It was quiet for quite a while after that. April massaging her temples, Matthew studying her carefully. Finally, April broke the silence. "Leave."

"What?" Matthew asked, more asking for clarification that questioning what she'd said.

"Leave. Go to Jeremy's, go to Alicia's, I don't freaking care. Just go. I can't look at you right now. We're going to stay here tonight."

Matthew raised up from his previous position of leaning against the truck and took a step towards April. "My daughter will not sleep in that man's house."

April took an additional step towards Matthew. "Take my daughter away from me tonight and see what happens."

Matthew spun around. "Fine. Do what you want. We'll finish this later."

April turned on her heel and started up the stairs. By the time she reached Jackson's door, she heard Matthew's truck pulling away.


End file.
